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Lauren LeBourgeois

The entire GSA group spending time together and are really close with each other as they enjoy their weekly meeting.

Gender-Sexuality Alliance Group has started their weekly meetings

It is a new year and also time for the GSA group to get started. This group may be small, but it sure is mighty. It is on a mission to help students who may be struggling with their sexual orientation or gender identity.

The GSA group is not just for students who are LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning), anyone is welcome. The group meets every Tuesday in the Wellness Center from 2:30 to 3:30.

For junior Ben Farmer, this is his second year as part of the group. For him, it is a social group, that he enjoys meeting with every Tuesday.

“I’m gay, and my friend wanted to be the leader, and thought it would be good for both of us, and I agreed,” Farmer said when explaining why he joined the group. “It’s a fun thing to do when you don’t have anything else on Tuesdays.”

For senior and leader Gina Jostes, this is also her second year being part of the GSA group, but she has known about it since her sophomore year.

“I had an interest in it my sophomore year, but I didn’t work up the courage to go, so I started my junior year. I kept seeing the posters in the hallway, but I was a little intimidated by the thought of how many people have issues with that kind of stuff,” Jostes explained.

One of the goals for the GSA group is to help students become more aware of equality in the community. Another goal is to help students who are a part of LGBTQ.

“We hope to keep it supportive and friendly, and open if someone has an issue they need to talk about, they can do so, but they don’t have to do that,” Jostes added.

Counselor and advisor, Kristina King just joined the group in August. She was also a part of a support group a long time ago.

“I get energized by being around the students and hearing their passion for equality,” King explained. “Even my children are growing up in a so much more accepting society. One of my son’s best friends has two moms, and for him, it’s just no biggie.”

For Jostes, it is also just a normal thing, she was raised where there were no stereotypes.

“My family has always been really supportive of all kinds of people. My siblings and I grew up without having any clear distinctions between like what is stereotypically normal,” Jostes said.

A goal for the advisers of the group, King, and Julie Geigle, is to do some staff education around reducing harassment.

“We want to educate the staff on terminology, what’s the difference between gender neutral and transgender. We’re also hoping to implement some gender neutral bathrooms with the new construction of the school,” King said.

There is only one issue, the club isn’t very known, and not many people have heard about it or know what it is.

“We’re doing posters, we wanted to have a display, and decorate it with rainbows, ” Farmer said. He hopes that the group will become more known throughout the school classmates.

Overall, the GSA club is on a mission to help those, not only who are struggling with sexual orientation or gender identity, but allies as well.  It is also for more then just the topic of GSA stuff. “It’s a safe place to go to, and talk about things, that don’t have to do with GSA, it’s like a social group that you can complain to, and they’re there for you,” Farmer said.